Improved exoavatob



@nitro gisten gstent @ffice Letters Patent No. 80,696, dated August 4,1868.

"IMPROVBD BxcAvAron.

@The .tlgehnh Infant in in tigen tettrrs rtent mit mating putt nf itssame.

TO ALL WHOM IT MAYOONCERN:

Be it known that I, CHARLES F. WOODRUFF, ol`-Newbern, in the county ofDyer, and State of Tennessee, have invented a new and improvedExcavator; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear,and exact description ofthe construction andoperation of the same,reference being had to tho accompanying drawings, making a part of thisspecification, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation. Figure 2 is a'topve'w.

This invention relates to that class of excavators in which `a revolvingscraper is employed, and consists in so adju-sting such scraper, and themeans for operating it, that it canV be worked'morc conveniently thanheretofore. 'Y A d o VIn the drawings,lA A represent' the draught-bars,united by a cross-bar or round, a, and supporting, at their centralportionb, the body, B, ofthe instrument, their rear portion extendingupward and backward, and terminating in handles-O O, 'which areconnected by a round, c.

The body, 13, of the excavator is hung to the draught-bars or frame uponjournals e e, so that it can. be

rotated upon such journals. Its sides are formed of two diamond-shapedboards or plates, D D,Yc'onneeted together by cross-bars or rounds, d cZd2 d3, and'by scraper-blades s s, constructed and arranged as seenclearly in the drawings. Its bottom is composed of two plates or boards,F F', hinged along one edge at ff, and so that when one side of the bodyB is up, the inner edges of the plates F F rest upon the round, d, andwhen the other side is up, such edges rest upon the opposite round,d2,as seen in iig. 1. g

The plates FF are hung loosely upon their pivots or hinges, so thatA asthe body ot' the instrument is rotated they drop against the lowerround, as seen in outline in iig. 1, forming a box, into which the dirtexea` vated by the cutting-blades s or s' vis received, and in which itis retained until, by the rotation of the box, it is delivered, and thebox isset again to receive another load.

Inorder 4to afford a convenient means for fixing thebody B iirrnly inpositlon, so thatit cannot be rotated except at the desire of theoperator, and so that when he wills he can allow vit to rotate freely, Iemploy an apparatus, which IA will now proceed to explain. It consistsof a ratchet, w, fixed to the side of the body B upon thejourna-l e, andhaving a pawhp, pivoted to the draught-bar A, and working in connectionwith it, asseeu in iig. 1. When the pawl is engaged with the ratchet,thebody B cannot turn on its axis, but when disengaged, the body is freeto turn, and will at once discharge its contents.

Thepawl is engaged or disengaged at pleasure, by means of a lever, M,which is pivotcd upon the journal e, and extends/alongside of thehandlesO, terminating in a handle, m. The short arm of the lever liesunder the pawl p, and serves to throw the latter up and disengage itfrom the ratchet. An arm orhook, n, extends 4from the short arm 'up overthe pawl p, and serves to draw the latter down and cause it to engagewith thc ratchet again. Thus, by throwing the handles m m forward or up,the pawl is caused to engage and prevent the body -B from rotating; andby reversing 'the action of the handles m m, the pawl is disengaged, andthe body B left free to turn and discharge its load. VThe handles m arewithin easy reach of the handle C, by which vthe operator holds andgoverns the instrument. The apparatus may be employed on each side ofthe instrument, or not-.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure b y Letters Patent, isa

or their equivalents, substantially as and for the purposes specified.2. The combination of the lever M, having the handle m andthe hook n,with the pawl p, ratchet w, and body B, when the parts are constructedto operate substantially in the manner and for the purpose specified. lothe above specification of my improvementI have signed my hand, this 22dday of May, 1868.`

' O. F. WO0DRUFF.

Witnesses Guss. A. Psrr`x'r, SoLoN C. Kratos..

1. In a revolving scraper or excavator, the combination of the swingingplates F F and the rounds rl d2, i

